May 01, 2012 10:11 PM UTC

Denver Post Copy Editor Layoffs Confirmed

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• by: Colorado Pols

Westword’s Michael Roberts updates from last week’s first report, confirming the layoff of many copy editors on staff at the Denver Post. With some vocal pushback from affected reporters:

According to an attendee, the layoffs will go into effect at the end of May. In the meantime, copy editors can apply for the positions that will remain. We’re told seniority will be considered when it comes to retention…

[Post] heath-care specialist Michael Booth wrote, “We would be losing a vital layer of journalism and a dedicated and talented group of journalists. What distinguishes us is accuracy and fairness. Let’s not pretend those values won’t be eroded by this move. I hope The Post will realize how ridiculous and self-defeating it is to add so many vice presidents while subtracting so many actual journalists.”

Added feature writer Claire Martin, “Thank you to every copy editor who asked questions that made a story better, more insightful, more accurate, more broad-minded. We need you far more than we need another layer of white guys in bespoke suits.”

Read the full statement from the Denver Newspaper Guild at Westword:

We understand the company needs flexibility to make decisions quickly, and we have afforded the company that flexibility with a labor agreement that allows the company to change newsroom operations and reduce the workforce. However, the Guild has serious doubts that the decision by management to slash the ranks of copy editors will result in a more efficient newsgathering process. Instead, we believe it will result in a loss of credibility as more mistakes and errors appear in print and online.

The Denver Post’s reputation is at stake.